This would be a tough one for me personally... I read Stephen King at 13 and quite enthusiastically all my teen/young adult years. I also really enjoy his writing style and gravitated towards the dark, mystery type books. There also were never any limitations or discussions on what I was reading... That said, I'll also admit that now, as an adult, I'm scared of the dark. Much more so than I ever was as a child, because now I have these images that my mind has gathered between movies and novels of axe murders and langoliers. I have to be really careful what I watch/read now because it stays with me. My mind can conjure up the most detailed image that will pop up any time I am alone, or in the dark, or other such time and place that is similar to the "scene".

Thank you!!

Anyone know of curriculum sales I can look forward to? I'm specifically looking for Saxon 6/7 and All About Spelling as well as some preschool manipulative stuff....

if dd thinks it will work then leave it... otherwise I'd do a duvet cover

Call them inside and make them clean it up! Either they'll learn not to trash it or they'll get sick of cleaning it up and not want to use it anymore.

:iagree: although I'll admit to not always having a smile! We have been living in an RV for the last 1.5yrs (moving into the house this weekend!) and for the last 4m there has been a neighbor boy who I'd like to just smack now and then, though I think I'd smack the dad first... anyway, he has no concept of manners, no concept of how to treat toys, no concept of sharing or getting along with others. He's an only child and he goes to public school and is your "typical" kid who's parents can't be bothered to discipline or spend time with him. So he's here all.the.time. I act like his parent "in our house we...." "the rule here is___ if you want to play here you will follow the rules" I've sent him inside his own house a couple times because he wasn't following the rules, he went inside and stayed inside (I keep waiting for his mom to come ask what has happened). He has a healthy respect for me as an authority figure, I'm fairly certain I'm the first person to ever equally tell him no and tell him he's doing good. I actually am feeling a little bad that we're leaving him here.

also looking for Logic that is more than just grid puzzles/games.

does your son feel he needs a self-defense course? It sounds to me like he's becoming the type of man I would want my son to be... comes to the defense of those that needs it, but doesn't need to "be a man" around the other guys. He sounds like he's got the self-confidence he needs without being overly confident.

This is illegal in the US, it violates the Emergency Treatment and Labor Act. No person is to be denied emergency treatment from any public hospital. I would have brought the whole place up on charges.

The biggest problem with these kinds of anecdotal stories is you don't really know what happened. Most of them here are second and third hand accounts so how you can anyone say the death/injury was a result of the homebirth and not some other circumstance?

Since you plan to start TOG soon I would probably just stick with reading biographies of important historians, your children are still plenty young that they'll get lots out of TOG. You could make up some worksheets to go along with your readings and if you have a good library it would be free.

I think a lot of it stems from the fact that so many people are going deeply into debt and then not using their degree. Or their degree is just a check box on an application for work that has nothing to do with their degree. I also think that as a society we are starting to look backwards, we're looking for the "good ol' days" so to speak, I think part of that is the idea that you work a job because you're good at it, not because you have a piece of paper that says you know about it....

ha! depends on who you ask... there are some who feel there are very specific "rules" about AP, such as co-sleeping, extended breastfeeding, wearing your baby, natural birth etc. etc etc... the problem that has cropped up (IMO) in the AP movement is the idea of parental passivity. Whereby you can't do anything that might harm your child's self esteem/psyche. So you don't tell your child no, you don't discipline, etc... everything is "child led" However, fundamentally I believe that idea of AP is that your child is integrated into your life, not merely an accessory. You include them in what you do, so when I cook I have a child or two helping me (even when their help is not much of a help!) When dh is working on the fence he's got a kid or two handing him tools etc.. We don't hire a babysitter every time we need to get something done, or sit them in front of the TV etc... We talk to them and involve them in what we do. We practice AP and we do some of the "rules" or common AP things, like co-sleeping, and we do allow for natural consequences as it's appropriate, and we do allow for some child-led things (like I try not to push academics before they are ready). However, there are specific rules in our house and specific discipline methods for breaking said rules. My children are "trained" (a horrible word in most AP circles) to behave.

what about a silverware tray?

We are in a homechurch, so there is no building, pastor or committees etc... we tithe to a savings account and use those funds as needs arise in our community/friends/family. We've used the money to help pay medical bills, help someone rebuild after a fire, provide groceries for an internet friend etc... We don't feel that the tithe is a command, but a good rule of thumb. We use 10% as a guide (to help us keep it in the budget and make sure it goes out first), but feel that Jesus made it pretty clear that it wasn't the amount but the attitude in which it was given that mattered... We also support a missionary family that we know personally as well as a radio ministry. The kids tithe as well out of the little bit of money they get, we save it up and at the end of the year they decide what charitable cause that money goes to. It's been a great lesson in learning how companies and charities manage their money. My oldest was really put off when he discovered that an organization he wanted to support only sent about 15% to those actually in need, the rest went to administration of the program.